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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. face — to confront
  3. season — in sport
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. row — to paddle
  7. ground — a position
  8. craft — boats
  9. face — to point toward
  10. prune — to trim
  11. season — of the year
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. ground — the earth
  14. prune — to trim
  15. face — part of the head
  16. ground — crushed
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. rule — government
  19. row — a line
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. last — finally
  22. craft — a skill
  23. last — final
  24. last — to go on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com